LEXINGTON, Ky. — The University of Kentucky can't invest $49 million for a baseball facility and lose coach Nick Mingione to Mississippi State.

Or anywhere else.

Mingione should lead the Wildcats long enough to eventually be the namesake (alongside Keith Madison, of course) on the new stadium set to open this fall.

That's because, in guiding Kentucky to its first back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Tournament, Mingione has both propelled the program to national relevance and created a local attraction.

The largest 10 crowds in Cliff Hagan Stadium history were recorded these past two seasons with the best eight all coming in 2018. And a record 91,000 people attended games this season during The Cliff's final stand.

The winning, the attention, the potential — Mingione has created the ideal situation for a sport other than basketball at Kentucky. And he's done it with mostly holdovers from the Gary Henderson era while yielding tremendous weather and recruiting advantages to conference foes with warmer temps, castles for ballparks and condos for locker rooms.

In Mingione, the optimistic 39-year-old, Kentucky has the right fit on the front end of what promises to be a long and successful career. And its investment of a facility that can seat 7,000 fans, with suites and club area, and offers players a lounge, locker room, training and indoor pitching and hitting areas proves the school is ready to do whatever it takes to win.

The next step is ensuring Mingione never leaves.

Mississippi State needs a coach after the abrupt resignation of Andy Cannizaro in February.

The Bulldogs have been to the College World Series nine times (Kentucky has never been) and have a 15,500-capacity ballpark. That's tradition and passion and there's also familiarity. Mingione was on John Cohen's Bulldogs' staff from 2009 through 2016 and Cohen, now MSU's athletics director, is the person in charge of making the hire.

"I knew he was gonna be incredibly successful because he has a couple of the intangibles that all really successful people have," Cohen said Sunday in Lexington for the final regular-season game at Cliff Hagan Stadium. "He had to overcome things at an early age, and that's really why he's such a successful guy. He's a great motivator, he's a great teacher, he's a great recruiter."

If not Mississippi State this summer, Mingione will surely be greeted with lucrative offers and tradition-rich destinations in the future.

When asked in February about the opening in Starkville, Mingione provided a real answer about his candidacy.

Exactly. And that's why Kentucky had already done considerable work to keep Mingione happy and in place. His contract was amended in June after the Wildcats hosted a regional for just the second time in school history and reached the super regional round (falling to rival Louisville).

► Bonuses for reaching the NCAA Tournament ($25,000), super regional ($100,000), College World Series ($150,000) and winning the national title ($200,000).

► Here's a thoughtful twist: After bonuses are reached and paid out for a given season, Mingione's next endorsement payment "shall increase by 33 percent of the previous year's cumulative post-season incentive." In short, when Kentucky does well, Mingione will continue doing better.

► And protection: Mingione must pay Kentucky $1 million if he leaves before July 1; $800,000 after July 1; $600,000 after July 1, 2019; $400,00 after July 1, 2020; $200,000 after July 1, 2021.

► Finally, this important nugget: If Mitch Barnhart is no longer UK director of athletics, then Mingione's buyout should he leave will "automatically be reduced to zero."

That's a pretty sweet deal for a person only two years into a first head coaching stop who has yet to hit 40 or reach the College World Series.

Kentucky is clearly interested in being successful at baseball. So, Mingione should get whatever will keep him in Lexington for a long time. A bump in his salary, more money for his assistants, a picture of his face added to the collection of Kentucky coaches on the front windows of Paul Miller Ford, an endless supply of his favorite dessert: yellow cake with chocolate icing.

Because a $49 million building will feel empty without him. Cohen, the man who could potentially take him away, said it best:

"The sky's the limit for this (Kentucky) program with Nick Mingione at the helm."